ATL-OAK grades: Matt Ryan, Atlanta tight ends overmatch Oakland

Here are the highest-graded players and biggest takeaways from the Atlanta Falcons’ first win of the 2016 season:

Quarterback grade:Matt Ryan, 69.7

Falcons QB Matt Ryan perfect on deep throws

The Falcons’ offense rolled the entire day with balance, rhythm, and superb play-calling by Kyle Shanahan. Matt Ryan silenced some doubters on his ability to push the ball vertically, going a perfect three-for-three for 124 yards on throws that traveled 20+ yards in the air. In addition, Ryan was accurate at every level of the defense, hitting on 26-of-34 attempts. A tough road win was just what the Falcons needed after losing to a divisional rival at home Week 1.

Top offensive grades

TE Jacob Tamme, 84.3

RT Ryan Schraeder, 80.1

C Alex Mack, 79.1

G Andy Levitre, 75.7

TE Austin Hooper, 74.4

Falcons’ two-TE sets overmatch Raiders

They say a quality TE is a quarterback’s best friend; Matt Ryan certainly displayed a strong connection with his pair against Oakland. Jacob Tamme and Austin Hooper both recorded top-five offensive grades for the Falcons, catching a combined eight balls from 11 targets for 159 yards and a touchdown. Along with Julio Jones, the duo starred in Atlanta’s passing attack. Coping with the combination of physicality and speed in the Falcons’ multiple-TE sets will not be easy.

Top defensive grades

S Kemal Ishmael, 82.0

CB Brian Poole, 80.7

S Ricardo Allen, 77.9

DT Grady Jarrett, 75.8

DE Adrian Clayborn, 74.1

Atlanta’s settled safety pairing developing rapidly

In Kemal Ishmael, the Falcons may have found one of those elusive strong safeties capable of setting the tone with hits over the middle. As well as registering four defensive stops, Ishmael closed quickly against the Raiders’ short-passing game, limiting opposing receivers to just 5.1 yards per catch. His partner on the backend, Ricardo Allen, offered the reliability required of a center fielder. Allen allowed just one catch on two targets for 3 yards. He also tackled well in the open field. It finally seems like the Falcons have some depth in their secondary.

Derek Carr’s rapid improvement shows no signs of abating. He was perhaps a little too eager to check the ball down against the Falcons, throwing only 10 of his 42 attempts beyond 10 yards of the line of scrimmage, but was highly accurate throughout. Overall, Carr completed 34 of 42 targeted passes (three throwaways) on the day.

Top offensive grades

QB Derek Carr, 81.4

HB Latavius Murray, 81.1

FB Jamize Olawale, 78.4

WR Amari Cooper, 77.2

LT Donald Penn, 77.2

Distribution of rushing attempts working for Raiders’ backfield

Latavius Murray might be one of those backs who is paradoxically more effective with fewer carries. He certainly monopolized his opportunities against Atlanta, carrying eight times for 57 yards (53 after contact) and a touchdown, breaking four tackles on route. DeAndre Washington also had a good day, carrying six times for 46 yards. In the passing game, Murray and fullback Jamize Olawale both saw targets. Combined, they managed eight catches for 72 yards. The performance of the Raiders’ backfield, and Murray in particular, early this season has provided a major boost for Oakland’s offensive projection.

Top defensive grades

OLB Khalil Mack, 84.7

DT Stacy McGee, 83.8

DT Justin Ellis, 76.6

OLB Bruce Irvin, 72.4

CB David Amerson, 68.7

Overhauled secondary underperforming

New players—and free-agent additions, in particular—always pose a risk for a team, regardless of talent. The Raiders invested in their secondary this offseason, but have yet to see the desired results. David Amerson was the only starter to register a solid grade against the Falcons, and even he missed three tackles against the run. The remaining trio combined to allow 11 catches on 14 targets for 193 yards and a touchdown. Reggie Nelson and Sean Smith have both displayed their quality in the recent seasons, but they’ve started slowly in Oakland.

PFF Game-Ball Winner: Raiders OLB Khalil Mack

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John joined the PFF team in 2008, providing focused analysis on the NFL draft, team-building strategies, and positional value. Follow @PFF_John

codered5

I feel like Ben Heeney’s grade is gonna drop whenever they re-grade this game tape.

Stan

Really PFF? Do you hate the Falcons? Matt Ryan 69?????

Gameball goes to Khalil Mack who was on the LOSING TEAM and registered 0 sacks?????

If it weren’y for stupid penalities on third down this game would have even been worse!!

AntiFalcons bias is so heavy on this website it’s rediculous.

Craig W.

The grades do seem a bit harsh for the team. Matt Ryan did have a red zone INT and another that was tipped in the air and fell for a TD. He could’ve been better. That is my neutral perspective (Vikings Fan).

Stan

Yeah but how can they give game ball to a player on the losing team that gave up 35 points? In fact, a player on the currently worst defense in the NFL.

Any other quarterback would have been given the benefit of the doubt. PFF is extremely biased against the Atlanta Falcons and is probably grading this game based on their own expectations for Oakland (a highly overrated team). These grades practically don’t even give us the win. How do they make sense whatsoever? If Carr had way less production than Matt Ryan, and he also threw an interception in the endzone. However, Alford (I think) pushed off. He didn’t even have to, he would have had a clean interception without the push off.

If one did not know the outcome of this game, purely going off grades, the Raiders won. That displays either bias or extreme flaw in PFF’s grading system. John Breitenbach or whoever graded this game needs to step back and reevaluate his bias.

Daniel Varnadore

thank god somebody said it…RIDICULOUS!!! 75% compl rate, scored on 6 out of 7 straight drives and spread the ball around so the defense didn’t know who he was throwing to next. Falcons are always victims of a media-wide bias but even all the other usual suspects gave credit where credit is due…